Outcomes:

After completing this class, students should be able to:

Describe the basic principles of positron emission tomography (PET), including the concept of coincidence imaging, the need for different scintillation crystals, the composition of the tomograph, and time-of-flight imaging.

Contrast PET imaging to general nuclear medicine imaging in regard to patient preparation, technologist actions, inclusion of CT imaging, and final tomographic slices.

Discuss in detail the use of F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) in oncologic imaging, including the biochemistry of its uptake, organs with normal uptake, patient preparation and FDG administration, and meaning of imaging results.

Define and analyze factors affecting the standardized uptake value (SUV) for FDG imaging, and briefly discuss the application of the SUV to other radiopharmaceuticals.

Characterize the use of and issues surrounding the operation of combined PET/CT imaging systems, and the advantages of co-registered imaging.